The Pentagon concluded that Alibaba and BYD should be added to the list of companies suspected of having ties to the Chinese military, two months before President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
The Department of Defense has been updatedChinese military companies” filed the list in the Federal Register on Friday morning. PDF It was suddenly deleted The information was published on the website at the request of the Department of Defense, but the Department of Defense did not provide any explanation. Defense officials said the Pentagon will release a new list next week.
The decision to include Alibaba on the list, officially known as the 1260H list, FT reported US intelligence agencies have said they believe the e-commerce giant poses a threat to national security.
The Pentagon also plans to add BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, and search engine Baidu to the Congressional-mandated 1260H list.
meanwhile US-China trade friction Tensions have eased since President Trump and President Xi met in South Korea in October, but the addition of powerful Chinese groups to the list will spark new tensions ahead of the April summit.
Another point of friction is FT reported Last week, the Trump administration announced it was finalizing plans for arms sales to Taiwan that could total $20 billion, after announcing a record $11.1 billion in November.
Craig Singleton, an expert on U.S.-China relations at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, said adding Chinese companies to the list is “mutually guaranteed to cause practical disruption.”
“Even as the threat of tariffs subsides, technology, capital and security tensions continue to intensify,” he said. “Releasing the list weeks before a summit at the top level signals a deliberate fragmentation to stabilize trade negotiations while maintaining pressure on the national security front.”
Henrietta Levin, a U.S.-China expert at think tank CSIS, said the move would upset Beijing, but was unlikely to derail the Trump-Xi summit.
“Chinese officials may lament that the administration is not doing enough to foster a ‘positive atmosphere’ ahead of the upcoming summit between President Trump and President Xi Jinping this spring,” Levin said. “But ultimately, Beijing is confident that the outcome of this summit will be favorable to its interests and will not want to miss the opportunity to extract concessions from President Trump.”
The Pentagon’s designation as “Chinese military enterprises” indicates that the United States believes these groups have direct ties to the People’s Liberation Army or are involved in China’s civil-military fusion program, which requires technology sharing with the Chinese military.
Inclusion on the Department of Defense list has no legal consequences for most companies. However, this creates a reputational risk for them, especially as it signals the possibility of future punitive action by the United States.
However, the Pentagon also added Chinese biotech company WuXi AppTec to the list, which will affect its operations in the United States.
Under the BioSecure Act, passed in December, the federal government is restricted from doing business with “biotechnology companies of concern,” including those on the 1260H list. However, the legislation gives the government five years to complete existing contracts and wind down arrangements with designated companies.
The Department of Defense has not released many details about why a company was added to the list. But last year, the House China Committee Asked to add WuxiIt said its management committee included members of the People’s Liberation Army’s Academy of Military Medicine and hospitals run by the People’s Liberation Army.
Wuxi AppTec objected to its inclusion on the list. “We are not owned, controlled, or affiliated with any Chinese government or military entity, and none of our board members or senior management has any ties to the Chinese military or political parties,” the company said in a statement.
The Pentagon also said the Shenzhen-based group is contributing to civil-military integration in China’s defense industrial base, adding the name of RoboSense, which develops AI-powered robotics technology. Also included was BOE Technology, which makes display panels for computers and smartphones. House China Committee Chairman John Moolener urged the Pentagon to add BOE to the list in 2024.
The Pentagon also eliminated two memory chip makers (CXMT and YMTC) in a surprise move. Michael Sobolik, a U.S.-China expert at the Hudson Institute, said it’s unclear what would change to justify their removal, given China’s commitment to military-civil fusion.
“There could be a reputational windfall for these companies, making them more likely to sell memory chips to U.S. customers,” he said. “The administration is trying to break its dependence on China for critical minerals. Why risk further dependence?”
Alibaba is one of the most high-profile changes on the list. The FT reported in November that US intelligence believed it was providing technical support to Chinese military “operations” against targets in the US.
According to White House security memo obtained by FTAlibaba also allegedly provides access to customer data to the Chinese government and People’s Liberation Army. Alibaba strongly rejected the memo’s claims.
Alibaba said Friday there was “no basis” to conclude it should be added to the list. “Alibaba is not a Chinese military company and is not part of any military-civil fusion strategy. We will take all legal action against any attempt to misrepresent us.”
Baidu said the Pentagon’s claims are “totally baseless and no evidence has emerged to prove otherwise.” “We will not hesitate to use all available options” to be removed from the list, he said.
BYD said any suggestion that it be added to the list is “totally baseless.” “BYD is not a Chinese military company and does not participate in military-civilian fusion strategies.”
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on why the Pentagon’s list was suddenly removed from the Federal Register.
Additional coverage from Ryan McMorrow in Beijing, Will Langley in Guangzhou, and Kana Inagaki in London